


sigh no more

by ashley_in_the_know



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Character Study, Family, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-03
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-06-01 18:45:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15149507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashley_in_the_know/pseuds/ashley_in_the_know





	sigh no more

Syldor never writes to Elaina requesting for the twins to come live with him. Instead, she writes to him, begging for him to take them. She’s dying you see, the clerics all say there’s nothing to be done. It’s not noticeable now, but it will be soon, and she’s not about to let her children watch her die a slow, painful death.

Syldor accepts, and she feels relief for the first time in months. It’s the right thing to do, she tells herself. It’s the mantra she repeats in her head as Vax’ildan begs her not to send them away, as Vex’ahlia accuses her of hating them through furious tears. She promises that she’ll write as often as she can, never mind that she can barely afford food and medicine, let alone ink and paper and a courier to Syngorn.  _I’ll see you both again_ , she whispers, wiping tears from their cheeks.  _Now, get your things packed. Your father will be here soon._ (She buys them each a plush animal from the stall in the marketplace on a whim, hides them among what meager belongings they have; a bear for Vex’ahlia, a raven for Vax’ildan.)

Syldor comes to collect the twins, and his expression upon seeing his children for the first time is almost enough to make Elaina call the whole thing off. He barely speaks a word, has his manservant settle the children and their belongings into the carriage. He finally meets Elaina’s gaze, opens his mouth to speak, but then thinks better of it and simply hands her a small pouch. Inside is enough gold to keep her alive for a few years, should the gods will it. She immediately resolves to use it all to send as many letters and gifts to her children as she can.

It’s a full two years before death comes for her. She’s in the Wildmother’s temple just outside of town when the dragon comes. Her eyesight is fading, has been for six months now, but even she can see the flames that ravage Byroden. She turns from the window, ash filling her lungs with each labored breath, to see an ethereal figure standing just behind Mother Seera. Long black hair surrounding a white, porcelain mask; raven feathers that flutter to the ground as the woman holds out a ghostly hand to Elaina.

She walks slowly to the figure, her own hand reaching out. Before she makes the connection, she turns to Seera. A tear slips down her face as she remembers her children, the letters they’ve sent to her. Vax’ildan’s angry rebellion, threatening to run away, to run all the way home. Vex’ahlia’s forced cheer that can never quite hide the pain underneath.  _They’ll come back to Byroden someday, looking for me,_ she says.  _My children._ She smiles briefly.  _Tell them it was the dragon._

She takes the ghost woman’s hand, and her soul leaves her body to pass through the Divine Gate with ease. She opens her eyes to a lush jungle and an ethereal woman that can only be the Wildmother stepping towards her, arms outstretched.

Melora smiles wide as she wraps her in an embrace.  _Welcome, Elaina, my flower._ She lifts her chin and places a gentle kiss upon her forehead.  _Sigh no more, your soul is at rest here._

There is a glassmere pool through which she can watch her children, and if her heart were allowed to ache here, it would. She watches Vex’ahlia sob as she puts a poor creature out of its misery and takes its offspring to raise as her own. She watches Vax’ildan bite back shouts of pain as he is branded by a thieves guild, a necessary measure to protect his sister. She watches her children, against their better judgment it would seem, join forces with a band of misfits and stumble their way into heroics.

She watches her daughter die and live again through her son’s sacrifice. If there is one regret she has, it is that her children believe the red dragon killed her, spurring them to seek revenge (though she thinks they would have fought the dragons either way). She watches them conquer, and she watches them fall. She thanks all the gods when they settle into a season of peace, their loves helping them find a place to belong.

But peace never does last in the mortal realm, and Vax’ildan joins her all too soon. He has his duties to attend to, and he cannot stay in Melora’s garden with her all of the time, but he joins her as often as he can, and together they watch Vex’ahlia flourish despite her pain. She tells him the full truth of why she sent them away, and his sad smile tells her that he understands.

She meets her son-in-law a good century before Vex’ahlia joins them. Percival only visits on occasion, and never without Vax’ildan. Her son explains that a majority of Percy’s family resides in Elysium with the Dawnfather, and that he’s making up for lost time.

Vex’ahlia finds them after Elaina has already met her grandchildren and a couple of particularly unlucky great-grandchildren. Her daughter runs to embrace her, shining like a beacon, followed by a massive gamboling bear. Elaina holds her close, feeling the warmth of the sun on her face, and whispers  _I told you I’d see you both again._


End file.
